[B]
Ms. Suzi,
I am honored that you are reading our balitaktakan here, and in my part my experience of 'Dungan'. My wawa (great grandmother) who herself practiced ancient medicine and healing traditions (she was considered a babaylan) taught me very much about these things. Everytime she meets a stranger on the road for the first time, she looks at them and smiles first to stand her 'ground' to ignite or show that her 'dungan' is powerful. She believes that if the dungan is not incited or is weak, the 'kalag' or soul is in danger. In some far more archaic hiligaynon in parts of Antique, Kalag or soul is Kalwa, very close lingusitically to Tagalog's 'Kaluluwa'. The tail goes that the Dungan is there to protect us, and it shadows everything we do. In social exchanges for example, people with more powerful dungans always get to have their way, that is why it is imperative they be good or should have good morals so that they can help others whose dungans are weak. I see this in the AMAYA story, her dungan or umalagad is of the highest order and she has the responsibility of using that grace for the betterment of her society.

Additionally, the dungans are meant to protect our 'Kalag' because we are nothing without our 'kalag' or souls. My wawa believed that there are evil spirits out to gain control of our Kalag and they prey on those with the weakest dungan. In so doing, these evil spirits can control the bodies and minds of people, essentially 'stealing' their bodies and imprisoning their Kalags. There are instances where there would be people who will take their relatives to my wawa (i was only a little girl then) and these relatives appear to be blank shells - silent, staring into the walls. My wawa uses a silver bowl, a collection of herbs, leaves and plants, candles, burning charcoal and ginger for a ritual that first discerns who took the 'kalag' and defeated the 'dungan' and left the body an empty shell. After discerning this, she calls the dungan and kalag back, giving an offering to God via some Latin incantations (here we see folk Christianity) and to Abba/Bathala by offering prayers, food and specific things to the river beside our old ancestral home. All the while in the healing chamber, the patient is sitting beside his relative in a room na pinausukan. My wawa puts some kind of powder in the embers that make the room smell fragrant. Then when she comes back after another set of prayers, the patient usually comes to his/her senses. I found it scary but at the same time fascinating. I have no doubt now that this practice came from her own ancient ancestors carried as a cultural artifact from the time of the ancient Pungsod (incidentally, pungsod in Hiligaynon means 'country' - hence a rajah rules a 'country' and a datu, a vassal kingdom within that country/pungsod.Even today in Panay and Negros, pungsod means counry as in 'balita sang pungsod'/'national news'). Alright everybody, good night ulit! Catch you all later!

Fantaserye or telefantasya is a decidedly Philippine genre. It is a mix of soap opera, fantasy,myth and magic where the fantastical elements are very much pronounced. Mulawin for example and Encantadia fall in this genre. Now, Epics are the stories of heroes and heroines that have been set in a grand scale. So therefore an epic story can be fantastical like the work of JRR Tolkien as seen in Peter Jackson's 'Lord of the Rings' or Historic Fiction without fantastical elements only elements of history-gleaned cultural and social details like the Scott Brother's 'Gladiator' or sci-fi fantasy like George Lucas' 'Star Wars'. As long as it is grand, it is epic. Epic is a word that denotes something majestic, something massive. That is why if the failure of something is so terrible we use the term 'epic fail' or if the story behind the win is so grand, we call it an 'epic win' as in the sporting heroics during the Olympics. Fantaseryes and telefantasyas on TV if done on a grand scale can be epic dependent on the story. Now for TV dramas and shows that contain elements of superstition, it depends entirely on how this superstition is used in the story. If it is a horror show or movie, then superstition and the supernatural is expected to have presence in the story. However if the superstition is only there to establish chracters or situations and they are not essential in the plot or story itself, then it does not make it a telefantasya at all as the supernatural and mythic elements are not pronounced. It can fall under either 'drama or fantasy' but not full on telefantasya as in GMA7's current 'Blusang Itim'. This is how I see it after reviewing the definition of these genres but bear in mind genres keep on crossing each other due to the creativity of writers and producers. Genres can be mixed and played with to produce something surprising and new.

As requested by many especially JagJof,Culia, RJ & Ginger - here is an initial list of books and online articles that look into Philippine and South East Asian pre-history before the arrival of the Spanish. These are very interesting books and articles because they discuss a myriad of topics from genetics, politics, social order, literature to culture. You will find that since these books are not very current, they will most easily have digital versions. Do try google books - you will be able to access them there for free.

Misskopinas

(Books)

Jocano, F. Landa (1975).Philippine prehistory : an anthropological overview of the beginnings of Filipino society and culture.Philippine Center for Advanced Studies, University of the Philippines System.

Junker, Laura Lee (2000). Raiding, Trading, and Feasting: The Political Economy of Philippine Chiefdoms. Ateneo de Manila University Press

National Historical Commission, Philippines. Unesco National Commission of the Philippines (1970).A Symposium on the Maragtas held on the 27th of January 1968: at the Epifanio de Los Santos Auditorium (National Library Building).National Historical Commission.

Lesson no. 9: On Magellan and how he communicated with the Visayan Datu/Rajahs

Originally Posted by misskopinas

Speaking of Magellan, before Magellan attemmpted to reach the Philippines, In his younger days he sailed under the Portuguese flag under the admiralship of Afonso de Albuquerque in a conquest of Malacca in 1511. At this time, Portugal had already set up a trading embassy in Cochin, India which gave them control in the trade of pepper and ginger. Spices are worth their weight in gold in Europe in the 16th century because they preserved and flavoured food. Wala sila neto dun and they only got hold of it from Arab traders who used the Silk Road. Pero this time, the Silk Route was closed for access by Europeans due to the Ottoman empire kaya the Portuguese had to find a passage to the islands of Spice and that is India and then the Malaccas - present day Indonesia. In this conquest, kasama ni Magellan ang pinsan niya na si Francisco Serrao. They won the Mallacan isles while Sarrao married a local girl from the spice island of Ternate. As early as the 16th century, Ternate was a Sultanate and Serrao became a military adviser to it's Sultan, Bayan Sirrullah. Sirullah traded with Datus and peoples all over the Archipelago. Serrao sent letters to Magellan who told him about an island in the North where gold was easily got and where pepper grew wild and it's people just burned them - they do not realize it's true value. This is the island of Borneo and Brunei is it's center of power where the Datu traded with the Mahardlikas - the Visayan archipelago under the power of a number of Rajahs. The isle of Ternate produces cloves and nutmeg and these are also very expensive in Europe. Serrao advised trade with the Datu of Brunei and the Portuguese helped the Datu of Brunei acquire 10 canons. This detail is very important because when Magellan died and Pigafetta, Elcano and co. rushed to the Trinidad and Victoria to escape the threat in Mactan/Cebu (they stopped over in Palawan prior to sailing to Borneo and they only managed to sail to Borneo because they managed to find Moro traders who sailed the archipelagos to navigate for them to Borneo and the Malaccas), Pigafetta writes he was incredelously surprised that the datu of Borneo has 10 canons of Portuguese-make. These canons made the datu very much feared.

The most interesting detail in all these however is that when Magellan fared well in the conquest of the Malaccas in 1511, he was awarded a Malayan slave whom he named Enrique of the Malacca. Enrique was very important to Magellan's circumnavigation. When they first landed in Homonhom island just outside of Samar, Enrique acted as his translator. From here they sailed to Masawa where they traded with it's Rajah, Siaiu who guided them to Cebu. Enrique was essential in all these for as a native of the Malay archipelago, he understood the language of each islands. But remember Enrique was from the Malaccas, this is very far down south in present-day Indonesia. Still, the fact that he could so very easily converse/talk with the Mahardlikas/Visayans proves that before the Portugal, Spain, the English and the Dutch came to South East Asia, we were a people with our own civilization, we traded with each other, we were in conflict with each other and we had a shared culture from our beliefs to our customs. In the isle of Ternate, the sultanate remains. In Bali and in Thailand, our unique South-East Asian culture before the colonists are still very much pronounced. But in our islands, present-day Philippines, the Hispanization had been so complete that only very small artifacts have trickled down from our prehistory in our songs, epic poetry and lullabies. Sayang at mahirap ng mahagilap pa ang mga detalyeng eto. At the very least, Amaya is reminding us of this past so, like the Balinese and the Thais and the Khmers, we can look back to a past beyond Maria Clara and celebrate the courage of our wariors, understand the values and virtues of our ancestors, their hardships and how they viewed the world.

Naku I have to sleep na pero may energy pa rin ako to share this info...I read kasi somewhere that they were criticizing the bright clothes used by the characters in Amaya...I cant believe that they would even question that...Its pretty plain that the slaves are wearing brown, bland and dark or neutral coloured textile that appear to be of very low quality weave and it is the Timawas/the upper class that have clothes that are so bright...Some critics even descried that the textiles appear to be Indian....

So, obviously dahil sila ang mayayaman, ang mga Timawa at mga rajah at Datu eh may damit at textile na galing sa India o silk galing Tsina. The Indians brought Hinduism to the malay archipelago. At one point po ang mga tao sa Mahardlika eh mga Hindus rin tulad ng mga pinsan natin sa Bali. Ang evidence neto ay nasa mythology natin. Have you guys ever wondered where the word DIWATA came? It came from the Hindu/Sanskrit word DEVATA - meaning angels or godesses. Even now in Bali the angels are called 'dewata'. Our ancestors had aspects of Hindu belief due to the influence of the Srivijayan empire. Another word common throughout Southeast asia is Susi - meaning 'key'. This is Indian and the idea of a key and the first prototypes were sold by the trading Bombays. Kaya kahit saan ka umikot sa Malay archipelago, Susi is used with the same meaning. Another word is kambing - everyone from Indonesia to Malaysia use the word 'kambing' to refer to goat. One can say that the ancient gods and godesses of the Malay archipelago - including the Dewatas belong to the same pantheon, hence the people then belong to the same cultural heritage. Ang galing no?

Just wanna share that when my Wawa would sing me her lullabyes, she called my 'bai' - or, 'ikaw ang akon bai diutay' (you are my little princess). Pero for women generally, the endearment in hiligaynon is 'Dai' or 'Day' as in 'Inday' which means a young woman. To this day, Inday still means the same carried all the way to the tagalog region.

I hope that for lighter moments, Amaya should include drinking sessions of Tuba - coconut wine. It is so popular in the Visayas region that songs have been written about it. Plus the most intense of Tuba - super alcoholic - is said to be drunk by the babaylan-shamans in rituals. There is this song, eto ang first verse:

Then it goes to tell of the drunk's shenanegans, how he disrupted the entire banwa because he was sooo drunk. Typical no, gawaing pinoy rin yan to this day. my lolo went home so drunk one night he was talking to a tree. He said he was having a conversation with a Kapre.Ha!

I think Rajah over the years na yung pagtawag ng 'Bay' pero its not really a direct translation of 'Bai' as in Prinsesa, it comes from 'nagatambay' or 'someone who whiles away the time with you', in other words, you hang out together as in tuma'tambay' or 'Katambay' or 'Bay'.

Pero actually for me, any pagpronounce ng 'Bai' like 'Bay' is not really right kasi Bai is really 'Ba-i', short for 'Baye' from the word 'Babaye' or woman. So when you say 'Ba-i' it literal translation is not princess but 'the woman' or 'the lady' or 'my lady' as in 'the lady Amaya' kasi pinakaespesyal na 'babaye' or 'Bai-i' sila sa Banwa. Pero puede na rin na princess, kasi ganun din ang status nun. I am sure there are other explanations pero these are the word-relations in my opinion.

takot ako sa wakwak growing up....its our equivalent of aswang although there were aswangs in Capiz and antique and my wawa said even our neighbors!

Basically ang wakwak eh version ng aswang o manananggal na hindi naseseparate yung upper body - wakwaks can fly like birds without the need to separate the upper from the lower...They could be anybody - friends, family, neighbors and then from the air they will snatch you and eat you!

My wawa was always careful of wakwaks and aswangs...she said you can tell them when they look at you...If your dungan is strong, they will back down....pero she said Kapres are cool, they help with so many things in the family...as long as you give them a roll of tabacco a week.

tiktik is the hiligaynon or karay-a (an ilonggo dialect) equivalent for Aswang...they are not wakwak but more aswang but they can change into any animal shape to hide from threats or onlookers....I had a yaya who was from the pinakaliblib na barrio and she would tell stories of the Tiktik that ravaged her village kasi everynight daw the tiktiks went around to eat their young and their animals...I thought to myself baka bayawak lang yun pero she was so superstitious na ang room niya sa bahay ng wawa ko eh puno na mga holy objects at mga dahon at kung ano ano pang pangsangga (panaming in our language) laban sa tiktik at mga malain (masama) nga Kalwa/spirit...Si wawa indi man siya nagritwal with dances, but she has a cousin na babaylan man who does that riwal...One time I witnessed an exorcism Babaylan style...kuento ko mamaya...sa work pa ako eh pero Katakot... One thing though, in my studies of African ancient medicinal and healing practices at Thai and Indian (Ayurvedic) practices, it appears that the ancients knew so much about their world - what certain plants do, what certain events do and they are so in tune with the natural world...Si Plato mismo he taught us that there are two worlds - the world of matter and the world of forms. The world of matter are the ones we see and feel physically - eto ang may anyo, ang nakikita natin. The world of forms are the ones we can see with the mind, it alows us a view to another world where only the mind can give us the power to understand...Descartes and even St. Augustine called this world of forms 'world of souls' pero the ancients just simply referred to it as the supernatural. Therefore the supernatural and the divine had always been a part of our world at kung ano ang paniniwala dati ay dapat na pahalagahn bilang isang historical artifact. It tells us how our ancestors understood their world of 'forms'. Galing no?

Originally Posted by misskopinas

sabi ng owaw (great grandfather ko, male equivalent ng wawa) ko ang mga babaye/babe ng capiz eh dangerous because they are so beautiful that they are either tiktik (out to seduce you), aswang or wakwak....but they could also be Tumawo which is Ilonggo hiligaynon for Diwata....(paging Ms. Suzi, sana for Diwatas, you will also use the term Tumawo to give credence to the Visayan heritage...but I dont think this matters so much, but it would be a detail appreciated by Visayans)...Anyway, my owaw said he had a friend who was 'snatched' by a tumawo when they were hiking before pa eto ng WW2...surveyor kasi ang lolo ko nun.Sabi eh may nakita silang babayeng-marikit sa bukid tapos niinvite sila to sleep sa village nila kasi me pagdiriwang and then the next day my lolo and his friends woke up in a forest minus his friend and the village.... It is a very familiar tale all over the world, even in Europe but if it happened, maybe the world of forms is very real...after all that Duwende made my Teddy bear sing. O siya mamaya ulit, still have to work then watch Amaya....

I am supposed to be writing about the creation of personalities...it is an essay that I have to finish for work but I decided to give sometime here as i think that this is very apt so that we can at least understand how mindsets and personalities are created. While my BA is History, my MA is Sociology and I have just recently began working on the influence of pop media culture to the creation of mindsets and personalities. It might appear obvious - what we hear, what we see, this contributes in creating us. There are 3 major factors - biology, socialization and environment. Biology is the blueprint that you have when you were born - the tendencies of your parents from genetics. usually, pag ang parents they like sour things, kids turn out to like sour things - we share their genes eh. Pero we are all born as blank slates, wala tayong alam. Ang sosyalisasyon ay ang proseso ng pagaaral ng mga elementong kultura na kailangan natin upang magsurvive sa social world - language for example, moral knowledge and virtues, academic skills, vocational skills, social skills (how we deal with people), belief/religion - lahat ng eto it starts from the family (our primary social group) and then the school, the town, the clan, the communities and other organizations we are a part of. ang tawag dito ay social agencies. Ang mga social agencies ay site kung saan nangyayari ang interaction natin, saan tayo natuto at nagcocontribute at the same time. Ang tawag dito ay secondary groups. Puede etong formal (i.e. Church/government) o informal (group of friends). Tayong lahat ay social agents - naapektuhan tayo sa natutunan natin sa mga social groups na kinabibilangan natin pero naapektuhan naman din natin ang mga eto - like here in pex - we contribute and then we learn. Ang secondary groups eh maari ding referential - for example kahit na online-community tayo dito sa thread na eto, sinasabi nating 'Kapusod o Amayans' tayo - referential yan kasi we become members of it because we chose to be because it points to a truth about us individually - perhaps you like the stars, you like the story, you like the station o you like history - whatever your reason, the label 'Kapusod' reflects you as you see fit. Ang environment naman hindi neto ibig sabihin eh natural world lang - mix eto, the natural and the social. For example, kung lumaki ka sa isang pamilya na matino, inaapreciate ang values aand virtues, sa pinkapuso mo eh naitanim ng family background mo ang pagiging fair - you will pick that up. You will wonder sometimes - hmm why am I like this, why cant I say no to people, why do I always want to help? Think back - is your mom or your dad like that? You probably picked that up. The natural environment also dictates personality - if you grew up by the beach you will always long for the smell of the sea and you will not fear the water as it had always been a part of your life.

These 3 factors - they all converge in us since birth. What we are, what we become is the amalgamation of the events in our lives in our roles in home, school and community and the events that shaped us growing up (happiness, triumph, failure, heartbreak). Now, it is important to see society - the social world as a combination of social groups mentioned above. Additionally, society is an open system. What does this mean - while human beings can make scientific laws that apply universal for the natural world (i.e. theory of gravity), you cannot do the same in the social world because sa buhay ng tao at sa susyudad, lahat ng factors cannot be accounted for. Therefore sa ating Lipunan, maraming 'truths' or versions of 'truth' - walang isang tamang paraan o isang katotohanan sa society - everything is situated, everything is relative. For example, ang maganda para sa akin ay panget para sayo...Bakit - iba iba ang biological, social and environmental factors na bumbuo sa ating pagkatao. But as human beings there are so many similar things that we share with each other and we are interdepedent because society cannot exist alone in one man. Why is this? Lahat sa society is created lamang as a construct. Take for example ang konsepto ng pamilya. Pag inisip natin ang pamilya - iniisip natin nanay, tatay, anak. Pero eto ba ay talagang realidad sa natural world o di kaya'y ginawa lamang ng tao ang konsepto ng family in a social sense na ang nanay at tatay ay kasal at minamahal ang anak. Ang mga pinakaunang humans ba eh kinasal at me marriage contract? Nope - everything we have from the concept of government, of love, of beauty, of country - all these eh social construct - ginawang struktura ng tao para sa tao. Lahat ng katotohanan eh galing lamang sa salita, pati konsepto ng good and bad.

Now as Ive said if society is a competition for power and resources, and if TV is a site of competition. Then TV networks are those social entities competing for the hearts and minds of the viewers because each viewing public becomes an end user and allow themselves to be influenced by the network thus giving the network power over people via the TV. Now, each entity are supposed to follow rules, written and unwritten in playing for your eyeballs. But because success equates to power, some will no doubt do everything to keep that power from the reach of their competition. One can compete by fair and unfair means. We have witnessed through the years the varied dramas that ABS-CBN initiated to keep their previous standing and claim because prestige begets revenues. If you are a thinking man, raised in a family that pushes you to think critically with a personality that refuses to just eat what is thrown before you, then you will not eat up everything you see as gospel truth. But if there is something in your biological, social and environmental constitution that makes it easy for you to eat everything you see and hear targetted for your ears to 'convert' and 'convince' you either to villify someone (i.e. Marian Rivera) or something (i.e. GMA 7), then you will feel the emotions that ABS want you to feel, for example. If this emotions are taken up, then the personality that results is one that is open to any suggestions, both obvious and hidden from any corporate entity bent on using such ears for their own ends. Man can be manipulated successfully at an emotional level and personalities that are so open for suggestions to that effect are always in danger of becoming 'tools' not for their benefit but for the benefit of the controlling entity. I am not generalizing, there are perhaps people who feel loyalty to the station who refuse to blindly follow. But such manipulations can result to tragic results for those who are manipulated as they become bereft of reasoning free from the ideology taught to them by the social entity. I recall the many targetted attempts of ABS-CBN in their shows to villify GMA 7 and Nielsen especially when the ratings were so low. It was a grouop of people in ABS that orchestrated such efforts and one can easily conclude that these group have always lived in an environemnt that they were above everybody else as such, the truth of GMA doing better can never be because in their minds this is not possible. What can we do, it is their socialization...You can change their views by dialouge but that is a long process. So, instead they influenced and raised their very own viewers and then campaigned relentlessly a new ideology then planted in their minds seeds of hate. They wanted them to be just like them, selective about what they will consider to be true. Who then is losing in this arrangement? Is it the station? No, not really. They achieved their end - they created 'disciples' to spread their fanaticism. Its sad, this should not be the case. People should be free to think for themselves and others should not take advantage of those who they can manipulate for their own ends. What will they get from it - their emotional state is full of discontent, their TV viewing is 'caged', everytime they see something in other channels they judge it according to how ABS wants them to judge it at the advantage of said station. How is this any different from racial discrimination and citizenship discrimination. In HongKong for example, people think of Filipinos as poor, lower class, uneducated and only good for being househelps. So when you say you are a Filipino to many there, the reaction is that you are poor and second class therefore not worth the respect begot say, someone from Britain. All because you come from the Philippines. Ergo, Amaya, to the eyes of ABS converts can be nothing else but bad and crap and no good because it is from GMA. Fanaticism, prejudice - these are blinders put over your eyes so you cant see the truth for what it is. That is why I feel so sorry everytime I read bashers and ranters here, not because they have 'hurt' amaya or you and me but because of what ABS has done to them and what they are allowing to be done to themselves.

Sorry for the long semi-essay, just want to explore the creation of such personalities from a sociological viewpoint. Next time, if you are all interested, I can do a conversation analysis of all their comments to show you their 'inner psyche' according to Freud (this is cool because we can explore their sexual personalities), Lacan (this will show their inner traumas) and Foucault (this will show their practices that create deviance). Its all in the words chosen, the positioning (according to Goffman) and the Footing within the conversation and text. I can explain all these - conversation analysis much much later as I had just finished lecturing on it. But, being one who had analysed so much text from mental hospitals, from the battlefield, from prisons - I can tell you this early - the examples of personalities we have here make me so sad about the state of Filipino thinking. We are bereft of critical and strategic thinkers and that is why ours is a 'Banana Republic'.

Misskopinas (lecture mode)

Iyakan serye, Kidnapan serye etc..

Originally Posted by misskopinas

Alright, a very, very quick text analysis...The words "Iyakan serye, kidnapan serye at patayan serye" indicate a familiarity and even command of the referred actions and situations attirbuted to each word - it indicates that the person behind the text is very familiar with the events included or attributed with the source of the meaning. each of these events and words give the emotional construct that includes the following - hurt, pain, drama, betrayal, cheating, corruption, death, criminality, deviance - in short, very heavy drama. But said personality keep on repeating these 'words' over and over again projecting said words as if a form of psychic exorcism to normativize inner turmoil and confusion. In other words - said personality's life is full of it hinting at some trauma wherein TV shows that do the same normalizes it. Said words, if taken at face value carry meaning that are harmless - they are nouns and adjectives signifying and describing TV genres. But said words carry a different meaning for the subject because it is in this very words that the inner turmoil of the subject is rooted - a disconnection between the id and the ego whereby the super-ego appears to have no power in pushing away the emotional state a particular social event has instigated in the inner-psyche of the subject. As such, the subject chants said words to exorcise the inner turmoil, bringing down to a level the subject can 'understand and confront' what the subject sees as the demon or the problem in his/her life and this is the word 'Amaya' and all the meaning attributed to it (epicserye, historical TV show, first-of it's kind, Marian Rivera, success) - note that only the meaning that the subject cannot take given to it creates the inner turmoil for subject has been conditioned by technologies of repetitive ideological instruments made possible by personality (one can detect likelihood of childhood insecurities and perhaps even adulthood insecurities ala Marikit) and socialization (an environment that reinforced the creation of said inner disconnect between reason, emotional drive and moral aptitude).

In a discourse that follows a particular pathway of thought and a set topic, the subject regularly appears to 'shout' and 'rant' not for the primary purpose of being contrary but for the purpose of gaining attention (the source of the need to interject in conversations) and to make the self feel better due to the inner trauma the word 'Amaya' creates. To raise value of self, subject associates self to people who watch well regarded US dramas like CSI and NCIS to attempt to reflect their representative quality to local taste. This attempt however is only that, an attempt - connections as to why it should make sense is not explained - the connection only happens in the mind of the subject suggesting a projective attempt to 'raise' self and 'fix status' by iterative (only in words) means. Perhaps said connection is not explained because it s also not clear to the subject. This, however fails to convince intended audience, doomed to fail at first attempt due to the social context of the interjection suggesting problems in logical thinking. As long as the subject does not seek therapy to confront the actual emotional disconnection associated with GMA or Amaya or Marian Rivera, this problematic personality will remain to haunt the subject for the rest of her life. The subject appears to be angst-ridden scoring a teen-stage inability to analyse actual realities. subject also falls into the category of Thread trolling according to attributed meaning of Troll in Pex.

Lesson no. 18: On the creation of 'Trolling Personas' and Deviant Obsession

Originally Posted by misskopinas

Hello Jag, La Traviesa, mga Kabanwa at Kapungsod...

Short lang ang konting 'share the knowledge' effort ko today because I am running errands for work...As far as my experience is of people who have major psychosocial issues, many of them begin at a point of obsession...Earlier on I have explained the sociological factors that contribute to create personality di ba - biology, socialization, environment. With biology, bumalik tayo sa 'internal' mental structure ni Freud - id, ego, super-ego. To remind those who forgot, id is the basic element of control which lords over our most basic instincts, sexual, emotional, hunger, feel. Eto ay nandiyan na pagkabata.Thats why babies are so 'basic' - driven by need; id is also unaware - di tayo conscious kung paano eto nangyayari, ang ating interaction with id eh puro lang 'feel'.Halimbawa, the 'trolls' feel that they must 'act out', 'rant' and stalk anything Marian Rivera or GMA related. They should have control over it but they dont. Why - let's go to ego. Ego develops from childhood through socialization - this is our 'aware' self. We learn the right and wrong of things, we store knowledge, we remember names - this is the conscious and aware element of our personality. This is the 'gateway' personality kung saan ang reality at ang mundo eh pumapasok sa ating consciousness. Right now, it is your ego and my ego interacting.It is therefore wrong to associate ego with pride - some egos can be prideful, yes, but it is wrong to say one with a huge ego is super prideful because one with a huge ego is one whose consciousness is so much more than the others. Lastly, super-ego. It is unconscious or unaware like the id but the super-ego is the 'saint' element. Everything that we learn about right and wrong, about ethics, about morals, about values and virtues either from religion or from school and community - dito eto derecho. This, Freud says, governs how we move in society according to expected mores and norms. Super-ego, just like the id is 'fed' and nurtured by socialization. Halimbawa lumaki ka sa isang pamilya na binubugbog ng tatay mo ang nanay mo at inaabuso ka verbally at di binibigyan ng respeto, mangingibaw ang 'id' sa socialization and personality development. Kahit halimbawa ang lolo at lola mo, ang Pari at ang eskuela ay tinuturuan ka ng tamang gawa, kapag tortured ang kalooban o katawan ng tao mula pa bata, ang pinakadominanteng elemento ng personalidad ay ang id. Many wonder why emotions drive them so much and why they cant stop acting the way they do kahit alam pa nilang mali at nagmumukha silang *****.Pero ang actions nila they know give them satisfaction kasi ang act ng pagbebwelta sa kanilang Id-developed reaction eh self-preservation yun. Halimbawa some trolls here grew up in homes where the beautiful and intelligent sister got the attention or even worse, the mother or father or relatives physically, emotionally and mentally abused the troll because they are ugly, may kabobohan compared sa ibang kapatid at ang parents mismo eh abusive ang ugali dahil malaki rin ang major malfunction nila (i.e. useless, drunkard parents with huge frustrations in life) - the trolls unconscious id becomes its major response - ang 'feel' nila, as long as they constantly target their percieved enemies, they will be okay.

Ang danger dito ay ang mix ng mental malfunction, puppet-maker control (halimbawa, ang ABS, being the source of their new 'truth' in life) at pag create ng obsession. Sa kadahilanang ang id ay masaya sa lahat ng ginagawa neto sa paninira at pakikipaglaban (kahit it is not asked or not necessary) for it's puppet master (at dahil marami sila, they get 'group-support' kung saan nagkakaroon ng collective consciousness no different from the lynchings of the Blacks in the 1900's in the US kung saan eh buong bayan eh sabay sabay na nagsasaya habang hinahang ang mga Blacks kahit walang katotohanan ang mga accused crimes nila - cult thinking ang tawag dito, yes kulto na sila), ang nangyayari ay nagiging obsessed ang id. Obsessesion leads to stalking and worse, to crime. Halimbawa na lang that poor guy who obsessed about MR talking her video and personally invading her space. Ang taong yun eh may mental malfunction dahil the act was driven by obsession which led him to commit that deviance. The worst thing that could happen is the id can even commit criminal acts to feed the happiness of the puppet-maker. Eto dito, online stalking na eto. Actually if this was committed sa Europe or US eh may legal na kaparusahan na eto. Ang pinakasad dun eh dahil conscious pa rin naman sla kahit papano, sa legal definition ng 'insane' di pa sila pasok. So halimbawa, pumunta sila ng GMA at batuhin o magcommit ng violent acts lading to a crime dun. Di pa rin sila legally-insane, id-driven lang. Sila ang magbabayad sa act na yun, buhay nila ang mapeperwisyo. Halimbawa sa mga radicalized na suicide bombers, kaninong buhay ba ang mawawala, sa puppet-master nila o sa kanila? I am not saying that ABS is alone in puppet-making, every company and every politician wish to have the same audience and the same influence. This is worse sa relihiyon. Atin sa Pinas ang daming tao na hindi maintindihan ang notion ng pagiging Kristiano dahil ang paniniwala nila ay rooted sa kanilang sects or churches at mga lider nila - their puppet masters. So, kahit parehong Kristiano, war. Marami netong mga ganitong katauhan sa UP dati, ang daming crusaders for Christ na doomsday at hell ang message. While for the luckily sane with healthy id-ego-super-ego states ang mga pinagagawa nila ay walang effect, sadly there are just people who are susciptible. And we see them here now, trolling. So, while it is easy to read their interjections (pagsusumbat sa isang diskurso na hindi sila welcome o hindi sila parte) with disdain and even insult, do realize that these trolls have no control over their thinking - they are purely in the hands of their puppet-masters and their obsession and it is controlling their life to the point that it is necessary for them to come here and cry for help. Each burst of anger or 'bash and rant' is a sign that all is not well in their minds. One day, this obsession could spiral to some kind of devolution katulad ng mga fans na nagpapakamatay. Today, I picked up a teen who tried to kill herself because her obsession, Prince William, got married. Everytime you read them you must 'reply a little' to set the 'right tone' sa discourse. I know many of you will say, don't feed the trolls. Pero you must 'correct the conversation' and steer it away from their interjection not only for yourself and for all of us but for them too. You must reply in a way that negates the claim so that you repair the pathway of thought. In so doing, you shed a little light to the them. Think of Gullom in the Lord of the Rings. His whole mind has been totally taken apart by the obsession of the ring. But, even if Bilbo and Frodo where his 'enemies', talking to them was pleasant as it brought him back to memories of his old life where obsession was not part of it and where he had no master. By coming here they are trying to 'prove their loyalty' to their puppet master but not only that, by coming here they are asking for help.

Balik tayo sa heart ng Amaya - ang ating kasaysayan at kultura. Today, I was writing a short paper for work on creation myths...Yung Norse merong silang Ex Nihilo kung saan ang mundo ay ginawa mula sa patay na katawan ng isang frost giant na si Ymir. Ginawa eto ni Odin, Ve at isa pang kapatid nila. Ginamit ko rin ang estorya ng Bibliya na funny enough ay hawig sa creation story sa Sura II ng Koran. I also used the creation story of the Pima Indians, the Sumerians and the Japanese...then I wanted to include a Filipino creation story...I did some research and found that WE HAVE! We have our very own creation stories - hindi lang isa, napakarami. Ang creation myth na ginamit ko ay ang Visayan Creation Myth na Kuento ni Maguayun- water primeval godess and Maguayan sky primeval God. I searched so hard for this myth, hindi ko mahanap....I have a book that is the collection of Asian mythology pero hindi siya included dun. I remember kasi my wawa would tell me the story of Maguayun (also spelled Maguayan or Magyawen) and the stories online are so small and summarized. I am sure meron compilation neto somehwere sa libraries at books sa Pinas pero I couldnt find it undtil I ran into the creation blog of a Mexican blogger and he was given this full story from a Visayan who contributed it to his archive. and here is the Story:

The Visayan creation myth says that many years ago, at the beginning of time, there was no stars, sun, land or moon, and the world was only water and the sky above it. Maguayan was the ruler of the water, and the sky was Kaptan's.

Both Gods had children, Lidagat, the sea, was Maguayan's daughter, Kaptan's son was the wind, Lihangin. Both Gods agreed for their children to get married.

From this marriage, four kids were born, three boys and one girl:

Likalibuta: He had body of rock, also was the strongest and most brave of all.
Liadlao: He was always happy, he was made of gold.
Libulan: His body was made of copper, his personality was timid and weak.
Lisuga: She was beautiful and her body was pure silver, also she was gentle and sweet.
Sadly, Lihangin died, leaving the control of the wings to Likalibutan, a few days later died as well. However, the kids were not left alone, because their grandparents Maguayan and Kaptan took care of them.

The Visayan creation myth says that the kidss grew and became beautiful adults, Likalibutan grew so proud of his powers, that he decided he needed more power, so he decided to attack Kaptan in the sky realm to earn it, and so, he asked his brothers for help. At first Liadlao did not want to help, but scared of the anger of his brother, he join him along with Libulan.

As soon as they got to the sky, they found it closed by some gates made of steel. Using the winds, Likalibutan blew them away and headed into the sky. But then, the brothers faced something worst, the angry Kaptan, who sent three bolts of lightning to the brothers while they were trying to run away.

When Libulan was struck with the bolt, he melted into a ball of copper, also the golden Liadlao was melted when he was struck by the lightning. Likalibutan body was broke into pieces for the hit, and many of these pieces felt into the sea creating land.

While this was happening on the sky, Lisuga was worried about her siblings, and went to the sky to ask for help to find them, but as she was walking to the broken doors, Kaptan, still blinded with anger, sent another bolt towards her, breaking her beautiful silver body into pieces.

The Visayan creation myth continues saying that after this was done, Kaptan went down and called Maguayan, accusing him of planning the attack. Maguayan told him he knew nothing and calmed the angry Kaptan. Both Gods then cried the death of their grandchildren and even with all of their power, they could not bring them back to life. But they gave to each body a light, that will shine forever.

Thanks to this light, Liadlao became the sun, Libulan the moon, while the silver pieces from the body of Lisuga turned into the stars. To Likalibutan's body was no light, but his body was the support of a new race: humans. Maguayan then took a seed that was given by Kaptan and planted it on one of the islands.

So, if a station's captured market belongs to the sector of the Philippine working class (combination of B,C,D & E) - then they have the greatest reach in terms of introducing new products and ideas to the market - ang mga taong namimili ng kanilang produkto. So please, enough of these class-thing already. If certain stations have upper class viewing them - then well and good. but this is a small market and they dont buy everyday, all the time. The products they buy have small bulk. Halimbawa - bumili man sila ng kotse kasi kaya nila, paisa-isa lang. Pero sa working class, bumili man sila ng sardinas, nasa milyung katao ang pumapalo at eto ang nagpapayaman sa mga kampanya. I hope this should be the end of it.